Chapter 10 - THE MERCER RANCH
The ranch was four hours south.
Federal agents traveled by helicopter.
State police blocked the roads.
I was ordered to remain in a protected hotel with Sophie and Mia.
I agreed.
Then I found the tracker Daniel had hidden inside Mia’s shoe.
A small black device had been sewn beneath the sole.
He could find us anywhere.
Officer Holloway removed it.
She placed it inside an evidence case.
“He planned this before his arrest.”
Sophie looked frightened.
“Daddy said shoes help families stay together.”
I knelt beside her.
“Your father used your shoe to watch us.”
“That is not love.”
She began crying.
“Does Daddy love me?”
The question hurt more than anything Daniel had done to me.
“I think he loves control.”
“And sometimes people confuse control with love.”
“But you did nothing wrong.”
Neither of my daughters had done anything wrong.
Neither had I.
I was only beginning to believe it.
At sunset, Agent Bell called from the ranch.
They found the south well.
It was dry.
A metal ladder led beneath it.
At the bottom was a concrete corridor connecting several underground rooms.
One contained medical equipment.
Another held old adoption files.
A third contained children’s furniture.
No children were there.
But someone had left recently.
Food was warm.
A generator was running.
They found Abigail’s stuffed horse beside a folding bed.
“She was there,” Agent Bell said.
“Where did they take her?”
“We found tire tracks heading west.”
“Toward the border?”
“Yes.”
A drone located a vehicle near an abandoned pumping station.
Agents surrounded it.
Inside, they found Paul Grayson unconscious.
He had been struck in the head.
Abigail was gone.
When Paul woke, he asked for an attorney.
Then he demanded protection.
“From whom?” Agent Bell asked.
Paul looked toward the door.
“Lorraine.”
“You bought a baby from her.”
“She said the mother was dead.”
“You blocked the DNA test.”
“Because Abigail is my daughter.”
“You tried to flee.”
“Because Lorraine threatened her.”
“What does she want?”
Paul closed his eyes.
“The trust.”
“What trust?”
“The Mercer land becomes Daniel’s only if a male descendant survives.”
“But Elena’s son died.”
Paul opened his eyes.
“No.”
My entire body went cold when Agent Bell repeated his answer over the phone.
“The baby did not die at the hospital.”
“What are you saying?”
“Paul claims Lorraine paid someone to remove your son before the doctor saw you.”
“But the doctor told me he was dead.”
“Paul says the doctor was part of the network.”
I pressed the phone against my ear.
“Where is my baby?”
May you like
Paul gave them one address.
A private airfield forty miles from the Mexican border.
